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Marcus hopes Australia continue to make their mark

Stoinis wants hosts to keep their foot down

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Australia will be looking to keep their “foot on the throat” of England in the forthcoming one-day series, according to Marcus Stoinis.

The Test leg of this lengthy three-format tour ended with a 4-0 home win and the Ashes safely back on Australian soil and Stoinis hopes the change from five days to 50 overs does not lead to a shift in momentum.

The batting all-rounder, who was honing his white-ball skills in the Big Bash while Steve Smith and company secured the urn, said: “It’s good timing for us, winning the Ashes and coming to this one-day series.

“It’s been a long tour for them so far and there’s probably some new players over as well, so yeah…foot on the throat, let’s make it a good one.”

Stoinis’ international career began in the aftermath of the last Ashes series – England’s 3-2 win on home soil in 2015 – but made just two low-key appearances, his ODI and T20 debuts, before disappearing from the stage for more than 18 months.

Now 28, the Perth native is hoping to lock down a place in the Australian squad in time to return to England in 2019 to play a part in the defence of the World Cup.

And the identity of one of his mentors is well known to England fans: Kevin Pietersen.

Kevin PIetersen has made an impression on Marcus Stoinis
Kevin PIetersen has made an impression on Marcus Stoinis (Jason O’Brien/PA)

“He’s been unbelievable for me, he’s been unbelievably generous with his time and he hasn’t needed to be,” he said.

“That’s probably been over the last 12 months, we’ve built a stronger relationship and have had continual conversations about cricket and perspective.

“He’s been through everything, from the front page to the back page of the paper. He’s a smart cricketer – there’s a reason why he’s as good as he is. He’s been good for me.”

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